Clichés rule! And that is specifically true for well-established metal genres. Heavy Metal is one of them for sure. Long past its heyday, you’ll still find bands wanting to go down this well-trodden path. They’ll make you experience that delicious devil’s music the old masters started once upon a time. And it’s a surprising number of them newbies tilling the ancient fields that their oldish brethren already visited eons ago.
Meet Wings of Steel. A surprisingly young Californian Heavy Metal band that seems to step right out of the tired remains of the Sunset Boulevard movement and the early machinations of today’s big veteran outfits. They’re still relatively unknown, but they’re getting noticed. Need proof? Wings of Steel played big festivals like the Rock Hard in Bavaria. That’s in Germany, not Austria, for those not in the know.1 And – to my surprise – they’ll be touring with Sabaton in 2026. Well, let’s just hope for them that they don’t steal the latter’s thunder, or we may have a ‘friends no more’ moment to report. And this old geezer thought that they don’t make them like that anymore. So, let’s hear what they got.
Winds of Time, the band fittingly called their newest concoction. In truth, the conveniently cheesy album cover already got our internal Heavy Metal warning system to blare at full force. And once the title track starts, you’re – wham – back in the ’80s, enjoying a Heavy Metal sound that’s as authentic as you can get it these days. Not sure what time machine these guys used, but they’re straight on the money.
And as always, Heavy Metal is as good as the vocalist’s metal screams. Enter, Leo Unnermark, the equally unknown Swedish vocalist. And unknown he may be, but he’s also beset with an absolutely dream-like set of pipes.2 True metal screams, right out of the Book of Heavy Metal and on par with an early Bruce Dickinson3. And I mean, complete with the trademark warbling that doesn’t always hit all the right notes. But, same as the Bruce-man, he shall be exonerated from his sins. Because the rest of his performance simply blew us away. But the references won’t stay there. As the tracks rush by, you’ll hear masters like Dio or Geoff Tate4 coming through as well.
Now, it appears that the band itself morphed from a duo into a three-piece since Gates of Twilight aired. Parker Halub still tortures the strings, and one Damien Rainaud seems to have joined the fray on drums. At the pace this band progresses, they’ll need to think about a permanent bassist, and fast. But, maybe, that’s just me.
As to the metal on offer, placing the title track straight at the top is and will be a wild and dangerous proposition. To add insult to injury, Winds of Time5 comes with almost 11 minutes of airtime. But fear naught. None of the tracks are bad, and this first one truly shows you the way. A blend of thundering Speed and Heavy Metal meets subdued Post Metal antics. And you get everything Wings of Steel got in their arsenal in one giant track. Unnermark fearfully torturing his vocal strings with an awesome display of Heavy Metal power, the guitarist absolutely wrecking it in the solo department. Halub‘s riffs are already top-notch and never, ever gripe. But I seldom heard solos of that kind of quality on a Heavy Metal piece.6 And the new drummer truly is a revelation on par with the guitarist in talent and savoir-faire.
Of course, Wings of Time isn’t all about the title track. Saint and Sinners sent the loosely attached hairpieces of the old geezers at the RMR Review Desk flying with its thunderous airs and 200 mph speed frenzy. This track somewhat sounds like a modern metal version of Krokus’ title track of their 1983 album Headhunter. Fast, brutal, and backed by a ferocious double blast of them wardrums. Burning Sands kills it with Sorcerer-like gusto. A mix of Heavy and Doom Metal, with some whiffs of Crypt Sermon in between. And did we hear some Dio-esque antics on We Rise? More than likely, and a delicious track it is also. One that could step straight out of one of the old fiend’s classic albums.
In the end, there’s not much to bemoan on Wings of Time. State-of-the-art Heavy Metal, a finely tuned production, outstanding musicianship, and a gifted trio that will make the Planet ov Heavy Metal come to life all over again. On the downside, there’s an annoying tendency to lean into Hair Metal a tad too much. But that’s small potatoes compared to wares on offer here. In short, the RMR crew found itself a gem of a metal piece. This band is going places, and RMR will be on the lookout for their next record.
Record Rating: 8/10 | Label: High Roller Records | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 17 October 2025
- Americans, I look straight at you. -Ed.-↩
- I hear, the man looks for vocalists to coach. The out-of-a-job singer of the newly defunct Niviane seems to be in need. He dwells right in your neck of the woods, Wings of Steel. Just sayin’.-↩
- The guy from Iron Maiden.-↩
- The former singer of Queensrÿche. Steamy story, you should read up on it.-↩
- The title track.-↩
- Iommi, you listening? Someone’s stealing your thunder. -Ed.-↩